Hemlock teenage author writes magical tale

CourtesyMcKenzie Dempsey is the author of "The Last Acer," the first book in a four-book series called Spirit Hearts.

Earlier in the day, McKenzie Dempsey had finished her geometry and English exams at Valley Lutheran High School in Saginaw Township, and while she was glad to put them behind her before starting Christmas break, you can bet one didn’t tax her talents.

After all, the Hemlock freshman is a published writer, with two more books in the works in her four-part fantasy series, “Spirit Hearts.”

“An idea came to me while I was writing notes in my English class two years ago, and I went home and wrote a prologue,” said 15-year-old Dempsey, the daughter of James and Karen Dempsey. “I showed it to my dad and he really encouraged me to do more.”

The first book, “The Last Acer,” is about a young boy, Travis Wegner, who, with the help of a gryphon, attains magical powers and begins a journey to find how to use them in a responsible way.

“It’s called the Crystal of Courage, and he learns how to be creative, doing what’s right and helping others who can’t help themselves,” Dempsey said. “I liked the name Travis, and Wegner is my mother’s maiden name. And it’s set in the land of Sirmara, a name I liked from the beginning, even though the original plot has been changed around a lot since then.”

An avid reader herself, Dempsey drew on her own love of fantasy, family and faith, she said, and the later books build on the foundation set as a growing number of characters take on the dark forces gaining strength.

“The Last Acer,” released in October, is self-published through Isaac Publishing, and is available on the company’s website, isaacpublishing.com, along with amazon.com and Dempsey’s own website, legendwings1.squarespace.com. The books cost $13.75 and Dempsey said she will add a personal message and sign those ordered directly from her.

“We had 300 copies at my house, and we’ve probably sold about 150 already,” she said. “I was at school when they were first delivered — my mom said the UPS lady just kept unloading boxes and boxes of books — and when I got home, oh, my goodness.”

Since then, she said, people who’ve read the book compare her to authors J.K. Rowling and Johnathan Rand, though she’s very critical of her own work. And even as she edits the second book and begins writing the third, Dempsey admits she still reads her own copy of the first.

“I was at a game with the pep band, and I kept reading my book there,” she said. “This kid was teasing me about it; he said, ‘Don’t you know what’s going to happen next?’ I do, but I still get caught up in it all.”

When she needs a break from the series and isn’t studying for exams, Dempsey said she’s started a couple of side projects. And she hopes to make it a career, first finding a traditional publisher to take her series to a wider audience.

“I love writing,” she said. “I know this is a work in progress, but it comes very naturally to me. I started this when I was 13, in seventh grade, and I can’t imagine doing anything else now.”

Her next one will showcase a friend’s talents as well — Kaylee McDonald will design the book’s cover, Dempsey said. Hopefully, she said, it will be ready for a summer release. And her brother Dominick shows up in a character proficient in the martial arts. Dominick, 13, holds a black belt in karate.

“A couple of my teachers at St. Peter (Lutheran School in Hemlock) bought my first book, and it’s available at the Mary Raucholz Library in Hemlock,” she said. “It’s all very exciting.”